“….special orders don’t upset us. All we ask is that you let us serve it your way….Have it youuur way, have it your way, have it yooooour way at Burger King….”
Anyone besides me remember that late 70s BK commercial?
Is having a somewhat of a good memory count as an ‘odd, useless talent’? I don’t exactly hide it, but neither do I go to great lengths to share it. It simply comes out in casual conversation, or when we happen to be playing certain games.
My favorite board game is Trivial Pursuit, and in college, we’d have games that went on for days, until one of us finally won. I also love to play Lunchtime Trivia at Buffalo Wild Wings.
Remember Schoolhouse Rock? I loved those segments every Saturday, looking forward especially to ‘Three Is A Magic Number’, ‘A Noun is a Person, Place, or Thing’, and “Rockin’ and a-rollin’, splishin’ and a-splashin’, look over the horizon and what do we see? Looks like it’s going to be a free country…”
I never thought those jingles would ever come in handy….but that’s how I still remember my multiplication tables and some history….especially when it came to my 11th grade History.
We’d been learning about the Constitution, and when Mr. H told us to pull out a piece of paper and write the Preamble as a quiz, I realized I’d learned the jingle! So I proceeded to sing it under my breath (so I thought, anyway!) as I wrote, and smiled in satisfaction when being one of the first to finish.
After class, Mr. H stopped me.
“What were you singing during the quiz?”
“The preamble.”
He looked blank. “Huh?”
“We the people….in order to form a more perfect union…to establish justice, ensure domestic tranquility…”
“You didn’t teach that to anyone, did you?”
I shrugged. “If they paid attention to Schoolhouse Rock on Saturdays, then they know it too.”
“Get out of my class….”
I laughed all the way to my locker!
Another time, I was writing my 3rd book, Forbidden Love, which showcases both the 1986 and 87 Indianapolis 500. I needed to know the slowest speed of a qualifying car for those years, so I called IMS to see if they could help me (I think this was before Google). I ended up speaking with Donald Davidson, the IMS historian, and during our conversation, I mentioned remembering something about Dick Simon being the oldest driver in the field. Donald looked it up, then commented that my memory was better than his; he’d forgotten that tidbit of trivia!
A long memory can also have it’s bad side. For instance, I also remember nearly every painful moment of the years I spent at the bottom of the social pecking order, and every once in a while a painful glimpse will worm its way into a recollection, and I’ll cringe with shame and embarrassment all over again.
Remember Dumbledore’s Memory Cauldron, or whatever he called it? Where he would place his memories so they wouldn’t clutter up his brain? I wish I could banish some of my memories to that place. Especially some of the more stupid stuff I’ve done over the years.
Molly's Musings/Kenzie's Korner 
That’s hilarious: I count among my “useless” talents an excellent memory for song lyrics too. In fact, when my high school students were fretting about having to memorize the preamble to the Constitution (I was their English teacher, not history), guess which video I showed them? I wish that talent for memorizing extended to other areas. While I can remember songs I learned/heard long ago, I don’t retain details from films, TV shows, or books. My husband is always asking me, “Don’t you remember that movie? We saw it together a few years ago.” Maybe it’s because I read all the time?
LOL! There are some movie lines which stick in my brain, but you’re right…..someone will quote some obscure line and I’m clueless, unless it’s a well-known one. Then there’s the joke….How come I can remember song lyrics from 30 years ago, yet forget why I went into the kitchen? LMAO!
I remember Schoolhouse Rock and a lot of other snippets. One of my favorites I got from Robert B. Parker’s Spenser series which he took from Tennyson: “My strength is the strength of ten, because my heart is pure.”
One of the ones I can’t find is the Dough-Nuts or Meter (Liter?) Man…”On their way to spend their dough w/o their common sense. They’re the Dough-Nuts!” And….”I’m Meter (Liter?) Man! A friend and I went to the gas station; he filled up with gallons, I filled up with liters…” (can’t remember the rest) I KNOW I didn’t make that stuff up!
I do remember the MD jingle and Schoolhouse Rock. Lolgreat post!
Thank you Cathy:) I did some searching on YouTube yesterday and found the ‘Meter Gang’ intro….I’d forgotten about WonderGram and Dr. Celcius! Also it was Meter Man and Liter Peter (I think)
Oh my goodness, I had almost forgotten about Schoolhouse Rock. Thank you for refreshing my memory! I’m afraid that other than quoting movies, I don’t have an especially good memory. That’s a talent I admire.
Thanks for stopping by Kate! Glad you enjoyed that trip down Memory Lane!